National census count begins with political representation, funding at stake

2010 Census forms started arriving in some 120 million households today, marking the official start of the nation’s attempt to count every person who’s living in the US. The census count determines how congressional district lines are drawn and how seats are apportioned based on the number of people the census counts in a given area. This in turn directly impacts the amount of federal funding that is given to states, counties and cities to carry out their basic governmental functions. But conducting a count of every single person is not only a highly political issue, it is rife with complexities and obstacles that can affect the final count. The counting problems are especially challenging in New York, which is the third most populous state, just behind California and Texas. New York’s Community News Production Institute and reporter Kyra Lawson file this report.